Nik Makino

Nikolson Makino (born 1995) is a Filipino rapper. Although he started rapping as a 16-year-old in 2011, Makino rose to popularity with the controversial tracks "Neneng B" and "Lexi" during the COVID-19 pandemic. After becoming a family man and concerned with his negative influence on children, Makino decided to move away from his sexually explicit lyrics in his debut album Hype One's (2022), a more personal record which explores themes of self-realization, love and friendship. He appeared on the Billboard Philippines Songs chart twice, with the Flow G collaborations "Moon" and "We Made It".

Nikolson Makino^[1] was born in 1995.^[2][3][4] Growing up in Abad Santos, Tondo, Makino started rapping in 2011 as a 16-year-old and spends time in the U.S. state of New Jersey.^[3][4] His early releases were a series of mixtapes and extended plays (EPs),^[4] including Most Needed Mixtape, Now I Know, Love Lust Lies Mixtape, and It’s Nik Mixtape.^[5]

Makino rose to popularity with the singles "Neneng B", a collaboration with Raf Davis, and "Lexi",^[1][4] which garnered a combined 95 million views.^[6] "Neneng B" went viral during the COVID-19 pandemic,^[2] reaching at least No. 12 on the now-defunct Philippine Music Charts in February 2020,^[7] but both songs proved controversial because of their sexually explicit lyrics and Makino attracted many critics.^[2][3] Lino Brocka's organization, The Concerned Artists of the Philippines, criticized "Neneng B" for "[reinforcing] the idea that women exist to be fetishized for male pleasure", like many other artists who "tread this well-worn path of toxic and fragile masculinity.”^[5] In November 2019, European producer Roko Tensei threatened to sue Makino and Davis, alleging that "Neneng B" had stolen his beat "Relax". While Makino claimed that he had already paid for the beat, they later reached an out-of-court settlement.^[1]

Makino decided to move on from his "bad boy" image after he found out children were listening to "Neneng B" at parties. He considered what kind of influence he wanted to have with his music.^[4][6] He also wanted to change personally, having become a family man:^[2] he had settled down with his now-wife Krystal Kate "Siobe Lim" Mana, the model from the "Neneng B" music video, and began raising his newborn daughter, born in 2020 or 2021.^[1][3] According to the Manila Standard, Makino now wanted make songs about "self-realization and [celebrating] family, friendship, and some clean, laid-back fun"—music that had a "lasting impact".^[2]

Makino was Believe AS Philippines' first signee, and his first projects under the label were the EPs Aye Mami (2020)—which Makino called his transition from his "fuckboy" image—Bouncy Boy, featuring collaborations with Shao Lin and Kenzo, and Censored (both 2021).^[4][8] Believe noticed him because his large social media following;^[3] he often posts vlogs online and also has many TikTok followers.^[6][9] Makino said he suffered depression during his first year with Believe and had to reflect on why he chose to do music. Believe mostly gave Makino creative freedom, and Makino built his own home studio.^[4]

On January 15, 2022, Makino released the single "Dahan Lang" (Filipino: Just Take it Slow), which featured A. Ross. He released "Pag-Ibig Sayo" (Filipino: Love For You) for Valentine's Day.^[3][8] "Ready Ka" (Filipino: You Ready), featuring Dash Calzado, came out days before he released his debut album Hype One's (2022). A mellower and more personal record, its 14 songs were inspired by the 26-year-old's journey both in his music and his personal life. Makino wanted his listeners to connect to his music more positively and be inspired to follow their own goals. He tried to distance himself from "Neneng B" and "Lexi"; the more laidback sound was reminiscent of his early career.^[3][6]

The Flow G feature "Moon" was one of the album's most anticipated tracks. On it, the pair rap about the ups and downs of their rise to success over strings and a trap beat.^[6] In September, it peaked at No. 16 on the Billboard Philippines Songs chart.^[10] Makino and Flow G later performed "Moon" at the 8th Wish Music Awards ceremony in Quezon City's Araneta Coliseum.^[11] Other songs had a pop rap sound, where Makino sings about watching the sunset and counting the stars.^[3]

After Hype One's, Makino continued to release singles.^[4] On June 17, 2022, he featured on DAZE's single "G.G.D." (Good Girl Drug).^[12] He featured on and co-wrote KZ Tandingan's "Pinas Lang Malakas" (Filipino: Only Philippines is Strong), the theme song for the Filipino teams Blacklist and Echo at the MLBB M4 World Championship, which was released on December 28.^[13][14] In November 2023, Makino and Mayo Marte, a long-time collaborator and fellow Believe signee, hosted a listening party for their unreleased songs at Quezon City's Sine Pop. While there, Makino said he based his songs on his self-reflection on his life experiences. He also talked about his wife's constant support and said that instead of trying to make hits, he is currently just doing what he enjoys.^[9][15][16]

Makino's second charting song was another Flow G collaboration, "We Made It", which peaked at No. 7 in February 2024.^[17] Its music video included futuristic cityscapes of Manila.^[18] Filipino actor Miguel Tanfelix participated in a popular TikTok challenge set to the song which followed dance moves by Filipino choreographer Jay Joseph.^[19] Makino's second single for the year, "Sobrang Solid" (Filipino: Super Solid), was a collaboration with producer NexxFriday.^[20]

• Hype One's (2022)